The boy from the bush is back in town!
Renowned Australian country music star, Lee Kernaghan is gearing up to play huge career defining shows this July.
Before jetting over to Tasmania, Kernaghan will be stopping in Traralgon, Narre Warren, Geelong and Warrnambool, Thursday 4, Friday 5, Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 July respectively, on his Boys From The Bush 2024 Tour. The tour is the first following Covid-cancellations.
“This is super exciting to go out on a national tour again after quite a while between shows,” says Kernaghan.
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“I had two national tours that had to be cancelled as a result of [the pandemic], but the good news is we are back on the road with the biggest production that I have ever taken out in my career and it’s a celebration of three decades of hits and country. The shows have been selling out left, right and centre across the country so it has been a terrific reaction.”
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It’s no wonder the tour has been selling like hotcakes as Lee Kernaghan is one of Australia’s darlings. Kernaghan has been at the forefront of country music in Australia for three decades with a staggering 4 ARIA Awards, 38 Golden Guitars to his credit and a mountainous 15 chart-topping albums attached to his belt buckle. His legendary career has seen him top the charts 39 times, garnering multi-platinum record sales in excess of two million units.
The twice named Hitmaker of the Decade and 2008 Australian of the Year, thanks to his contribution to rural, remote and regional communities across the nation, is one of the most dedicated musicians to his craft but also to his community.
Whilst craving the authentic audience interaction that Kernaghan is known for during, pre and post shows during a hyper-isolating pandemic, Kernaghan launched an app to bridge the gap between himself and his fans, whilst adding tech developer to his long-list of accomplishments.
“It’s just one of the things I do among a whole lot of other stuff. I got involved in creating a new app platform called StarKixs which lets people have one on one video calls with their favourite sport stars, musicians, celebrities. It’s a fully functional app available on the app store and Google Play, available all around the world and people are loving using it. I’ve been loving talking to people at sheep stations in Queensland and boat ramps in Western Australia and farms and cities all across Australia,” he laughs.
“One of the great things about music is it brings people together and the app brings people together as well for a one on one. Social media is all about one person broadcasting to thousands of people but this is all about one person talking to another and it’s kind of like what I do when I’m one stage and then meeting people out on the road.”
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StarKixs allows Kernaghan, amongst other public figures, to personally connect with people within their community, sharing stories, advice or simply to have a yarn in a really laidback environment. It removes the barriers between fans and their idols and has also made dreams come true.
“It definitely creates unprecedented accessibility. There was a young boy called Jackson who I’ve been talking to on StarKixs and he played me a few songs, he was only 10 years old and he was playing songs he had been learning on guitar – some of my songs actually – and he was so good I invited him to open my show in Tamworth.”
The app spawned out of Kernaghan’s desire to be connected to his audience again, something that he is yearning to do in person on these upcoming shows and through a new album release. In between touring, Kernaghan has returned to the studio, working on his new album with a new duet with James Johnston titled ‘Who Am I’ ready to drop 5 July.
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“The new song goes to the heart of who I am and what I do and my love for Australia and this country. I cannot wait for people to hear it.”
“I’ve always found that telling your story and writing songs about things that you know and the experiences that you have had yourself is what it is all about – keeping it really authentic as opposed to just making stuff up. I didn’t want to do that so I’ve been working on this new album now for a few years and I guess I could have put it out a year ago but it wouldn’t be the album that it is going to be when it is finally released later this year,” explains Kernaghan.
We smell another number one on the agenda, lucky number 40, perhaps? Kernaghan also has a good feeling about ‘Who Am I’ as well.
“I always go by the goosebump factor and when a song puts goosebumps up my arm or a lyric affects me in that way I generally know it’s going to resonate far and wide. This one has the goosebump factor,” he laughs.
The song is bound to make an appearance in his show setlist alongside his colourful country selection of ‘The Boys From The Bush’, ‘The Outback Club’, ‘High Country’, ‘Damn Good Mates’ and of course ‘She’s My Ute’.
Kernaghan jokes, “One thing about Geelong is that I’ve never seen so many ute’s in a car park as what I did the last time I played in town. Geelong, you’re my ute!”
Tickets are still on sale to see the multi-award winning country music master. Tickets can be purchased here.
